My name is Mark R. Nelson, and I am a Digital Content Strategist for NACS. The job is a great match for my background and interests as it involves intense scanning and analysis of news and developments in the business environment, evaluating emerging technologies and attempting to develop new business models that will align the technologies with the needs and strategies of college stores and other stakeholders. Previously I was an assistant professor at the Lally School at RPI. My research interests currently focus on large-scale change issues centered around new technologies and innovation. I am interested in these questions from an organizational perspective, along with questions about how change or innovation occurs within higher education specifically. I have worked in a wide range of IT positions, including programmer, helpdesk/user support, systems implementation, systems analyst, management consulting, and a quasi-CIO role. I have worked on several ERP and business process re-engineering projects, and have done some performance management work as well. You can find out more information on all of those things on the other pages of this site. On this page I would rather tell you a bit more about my personal interests and hobbies.
House News!
Last year was hectic, but we finally moved into our new house back in November, 2006 -- just a couple weeks before Thanksgiving. The house is in a community called Shaker Bay, located in North Colonie in Albany County, New York. We have a fantastic lot -- heavily wooded, with a stream out back, and just a few minutes walk from stunning views of the Mohawk River valley and a 35-mile bikepath. The house uses post & beam construction, taking advantage of the beautiful lot. The new house turned out fantastic though -- really quite stunning. We went for a "house in the woods" concept and there are many ways in which the outside is brought inside. We are quite happy with the outcome. Our current house photos are pretty old, but Sheila took some new ones recently which I will try to post here soon.
Not-so-recent photo (Dec 06):
Nearing Three Years Already !
Hard to believe two years have nearly passed already. I will try to put some new photos up here soon. The lovely lady pictured to the left is my wife Sheila. We were married back on July 1, 2005. Probably the big news this year is that we have begun the international adoption process. We hope to be proud new parents by the end of 2008.
Service to the Community
A couple years ago I went to Botswana, Africa for close to a month to participate in a volunteer project in the Okavango River Delta. That experience really changed my life, and you can find out more about that here, as I have included a narrative essay I wrote and published about the trip, as well as short photo-essay I produced later. That project changed my perspective on the nature of community and culture. For the first time I felt like I really understood the Native American heritage of my grandfather and what it means to be connected to both nature and the world. I became more sensitve to the perspec tives of others, and the importance of sharing our skills for the betterment of society. Most of the other volunteer or community service I have done has been more of the "one off" nature -- helping out when asked or when I see an opportunity to help out a cause I am interested in. Some projects I helped with include: conducting a performance planning session with the local United Way of Northeastern New York; helping the NYS Museum with the "New York in Bloom" event; a Haunted Forest fundraiser for the Audubon Society; several projects through RPI - such as working on a Habitat for Humanity house and helping to paint a mural Ark Community Charter School in Troy; serving as a mentor for the Albany Chamber's GenNEXT initiative; and many other similar projects. I would like to get more involved in community service activities and want to learn more about opportunities to do so.
I am also a strong supporter of several causes or organizations, especially the National Arbor Day Foundation and Saint Michael's College.
Hobbies
My favorite hobbies include snowboarding, cooking, yard work, hiking, racquetball, and stamp collecting. I have been snowboarding for about 8 years now and often wish I lived out West, where the "real snow" falls. I grew up in a small town between Lake Placid and Plattsburgh in Upstate New York, and I lived in Vermont several years as well -- so mountain activities are always of interest. When that's not possible, though, I enjoy racquetball, cooking or yard work to relieve stress. A philatelist since before I was in high school, I now have a sizeable stamp collection, with close to (or perhaps more than) a million different stamp issues from all over the world. My collection does not have any specific theme, although I really enjoy stamps that are somehow different or unusual from what you might normally see.
Books, Entertainment, Vacationing and Travel ...
For pleasure reading, I enjoy reading a variety of material from Historical Fiction, Science Fiction and Fantasy, to Adventure, Crime and some more classic literature. Hands-down, without competition, my all-time, most favorite book is Byzantium, by Stephen Lawhead -- which is historical fiction. My other favorite authors include Robert Jordan (Wheel of Time series), Clive Cussler (Dirk Pitt series), James Patterson, J. K. Rowling (Harry Potter series), as well as several others. Other forms of entertainment I enjoy include watching Star Trek (all series) and reading Dilbert and Non-sequiteur comics. I enjoy going to the movies, and my favorite there is probably Good Will Hunting. I also enjoy a variety of computer-based simulations -- particularly in the strategy and adventure genres -- as a good way to exercise the mind and have fun too. For vacations, I like nothing better than to travel to places where I can meet new people and learn something about another culture or way of living. The previously mentioned trip to Botswana is a great example. I have also visited Ireland, England, Germany, France, Slovakia, Austria, Switzerland, South Africa, a couple islands in the Carribean, and many locations in Canada and the US. We are planning a couple trips for later this year to Russia. Eventually I would like to visit China, New Zealand, Australia, and possibly India. I really think I would like to go back to Botswana again, as well.
